“On Sunday, the day of the last BMW becoming stuck, the gauge had been vandalised.”

The pole was lying almost on its side and although it has now been repaired again, the vandalism has been described as ‘the case of the dreaded gauge attacker’ by Mr Maynard.

“I’m not sure if this is one for Sherlock Holmes or The Goon Show!” he said.

“The prime suspects must be aggrieved BMW drivers.”

Around 25 cars have been photographed after becoming stuck in, or upon exiting, the ford, since July.

They include a police car, a supermarket delivery van and a taxi, with satellite navigation systems taking people down the route and the low air scoops of certain cars blamed for the rising number of mishaps.

A stranded police car at the ford on Lovelands Lane in Chobham on Sunday (February 8) (Image: John Maynard)

Recovery vehicles and four-by-fours damaging the banks of the single-track lane is a further reason why the lane should be closed, Mr Maynard believes.

He has been submitting evidence to Chobham’s county councillor Mike Goodman and the Surrey County Council’s portfolio holder for highways, John Furey.

The council has had signs put up warning motorists to avoid the ford after wet weather and councillor Furey has passed on Mr Maynard’s correspondence to the authority’s customer relations team to see if there has been any fault in service delivery.

Cllr Goodman said a council review did not find a need for the road to be closed off entirely, and stressed that the responsibility to follow signs was with drivers.